Apparatus for forming and driving staples



Sept. 1950 w. soRENsoN 2,520,973

APPARATUS FOR FORMING AND DRIVING STAPLES I Filed Aug. 6, 1947 afl. M 2 4/ j! 4 v 12 m 2 12f 17 1/ 138% I 54 v 525 I 2/ 24 a 1.6 16 z '22: 24 52 "1 2 9 [0 I 10 50 INVENTOR. 29 I Sorelzsvii A; BY a! 29 3/ 31 Y 47457427 1 4g? 1 49.9.

HIV'ORIY 'Y Patented Sept. 5, 1950 UNITED STATES APPARATUS FOR FORMING AND DRIVING STAPLES 1 Claim.

This invention relates to stapling o-r securing parts together, such as sheets of paper, cardboard, fabrics and various other materials.

It is the usual practice in the stapling art to first form the staples and unite said staples to form a clip of staples. Then said clip of staples is mounted in a stapling apparatus which separates the leading staple from the clip, drives the separated staple into the material to be stapled and clenches the driven staple to the material to be stapled.

It is the principal object of the invention to overcome the disadvantage in the present method of stapling by eliminating the separate steps of forming staples and uniting said staples to form a staple clip and subsequently separating, driving and clenching a staple by simultaneously forming and driving a staple into the material to be stapled from a bar of severable and pliable material which takes the place of the staple clip in a stapling apparatus.

It is another object of the invention to form and drive staples from a bar of severable and pliable material wherein the form of staple is determined by the angle of severance or shear.

It is a further object of the invention to clench staples formed from a bar with or without the use of an anvil.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be described hereinafter.

In the drawing accompanying and forming a part of this application, there is shown apparatus for carrying out the present method of forming a staple from a bar of severable and pliable material and securing said staple in the material to be stapled and showing in Figure 1 a top plan View of a device for forming staples from a bar with an intermediate portion of said device broken away.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary plan view, on an enlarged scale, with a guide plate and top member removed from the device to show a pair of clencher grooves.

Figure 4 is an end view of the device looking at the left hand side of Figure 2 with the guide plate removed from the device and showing a plunger in position prior to staple forming, driving and clenching position thereof.

Figure 5 is a view, on an enlarged scale, similar to Figure 4, and showing the plunger in its final position of clenching the formed staple to the material to be stapled.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary view showing a formed staple of ring shape secured to the material. v

Figure 7 is an end view of the bar from which the staples are formed and showing a. staple partially formed from said bar.

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of the bar with an intermediate portion thereof broken away and a staple partially formed at an end portion thereof.

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a staple formed from the bar before it is clenched to the material to be stapled.

In carrying out the method of simultaneously forming and driving a staple into the material to be stapled, there is provided a bar for severable and pliable material, such as sheet metal, and shown in the present illustration of the invention as comprising a V shaped bar of said material, as shown at It].

The bar is slidably supported in a V shaped channel H corresponding in shape and of slight- 1y larger dimensions than the dimensions of the bar to permit sliding movement of said bar in the channel. Said channel H is formed in two mating members l2 and i3 secured together by screws is. The mating face of the member I2 is provided with a V shaped projection l5 extending on the longitudinal axis of said member and the mating face of the member I3 is arranged with a V shaped recess l6 of greate dimensions than the dimensons of the V shaped projection to to receive said projection and form therewith the channel 1 I.

One end of the member :2 is arranged with a vertical groove or channel I! closed by a plate is secured to said end of the member 12 by screws 59. The closed groove ll forms a slideway for a plunger 26 shown in the form of a thin cutting blade or cutter to sever a transverse end portion of the bar ll, form said severed portion into a staple and drive said formed staple into the material to be stapled, shown as two juxtaposed pieces of material at 25' in Figures 5 and 6. The plunger 29 may be manually or power driven as desired and yieldingly urged to the inoperative position shown in Figure l in the usual manner, not shown, as it does not constitute a part of the present invention. The lower end portion of the plate i8 is spaced laterally from the corresponding end of the member is whereby the plunger is guided to engage a transverse end portion of the bar projecting beyond the end of the member I 3.

The end of the member l3 adjacent to the plate IB is provided with a forwardly projecting shelf extending in spaced relation to the lower edge of the plate I8 and said shelf is formed by the forward end portion of a plate 22 secured in a recess 23 in the bottom face of the member l3 by screws 24, as shown in Figure 2. The member I3 is also arranged with an undercut portion 25 juxtaposed to the plate 22, as shown in Figure 2, to form a recess into which the material 2| is extended when supported by the shelf portion of the plate 22. The space between the lower end of the plunger guide plate It! and the shelf portion of the plate 22 permits the engagement of the material on the shelf portion of the plate 22 in the path of movement of the plunger 20.

The forward end of the bar 10' is yieldingly urged against the lower end portion of the guide plate [8 in the path of movement of the plunger 20 by a spring 25 mounted in a recess 2'! in the mating faces of the members l2 and i3 and compressed between the rear end of the bar 10 and closure plate 28 adjustably mounted on the member l2, as conventionally shown in Figure 2.

In the operation of the device illustrated, a staple if formed from the transverse end portion of the bar positioned in the path of travel of the plunger 20 by actuating said plunger into simultaneous engagement with the opposite edges of said transverse end portion of the bar l proiecting beyond the front end of the member l3. Due to the direction of severance or shear being at an angle to the angle of projection of the side portions of the bar, the severed portions of the bar will curl in an outwardly and downwardly direction, as shown at 29 in Figure 7. By the use of the type of plunger shown, when the plunger 20 has completed its downward stroke and completely severed the severed bar portion from the bar, a staple of the shape shown at 30 in Figure 9 is formed. 7

The shearing or severing movement of the plunger 28 will simultaneously drive the ends 3| of the staple being formed into and through the material 2 I, and after said ends 3| have penetrated said material, they are clenched to the material, as shown at 32 in Figure 5, by clencher grooves 33 in the projecting shelf portion of the plate 22 constituting an anvil, as shown in Figure 3.

In Figure 6, there is shown a staple formed from the bar IE! and securing the material 2| in the shape of a ring 34 formed without the shelf 22 and the clencher grooves 33.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

In apparatus for forming and driving a staple, a support for a bar of severable material and of V shape in cross section, said support having a channel of corresponding V shape in cross section extending longitudinally through the support to rigidly support the bar with a portion of the bar extending from one end of the support, and a cutter reciprocating in a direction transversely of said end of the support and the extending portion of the bar with the opposite side edges of the bar facing the cutter whereby the cutter progressively severs said extending portion of the bar from the opposite side edges of the bar toward the longitudinal center of the bar and simultaneously curl the opposite severed sections to progressive piercing and clinching positions. V 1 I WENDELL L. SORENSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Woodman Feb. 6,1933

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